"So You Want To Play Jazz?

"
WERKIN' WITH WERTICO: JAZZ DRUMMING
By Paul Wertico

Hello everyone and welcome to my new column for Musician.com. I've been asked to write about jazz and jazz
drumming, so in this, as well as in upcoming columns, I'll give you some essential jazz listening recommendations, tips
on how to understand jazz's unique qualities, and how to properly practice and authentically perform various jazz
drumming techniques and styles.
In my many years as a drum instructor, I've had countless students come to me and say, "I want to learn how to play
jazz drums." I'm always glad that drummers are willing to study a new style of playing, especially one that can be so
intimidating at first. I usually follow up their request with a statement such as "That's great, what kind of jazz do you
listen to?" Believe it or not, often their response is either "Well, I haven't listened to much jazz" or "I really like the
Chick Corea Elektric Band with Dave Weckl." Now, although Chick, Dave and the band are no doubt fantastic worldclass players, starting your jazz listening experience at that late point in jazz history is somewhat like learning calculus
without ever learning simple addition. As for having no jazz listening experience at all, well, it's time to change that
right now!
First of all, jazz is a musical language, just like rock, rhumba, reggae or rap, and just like any language, musical or not,
one must first learn the A, B, C's to acquire a firm foundation from which to build. Then, those A, B, C's are put
together to form words, which then form sentences, paragraphs, etc. Learning the proper way to form sentences and
how to construct paragraphs is essential. It's also very important to understand the correct way to pronounce those
letters and words. Get my point? Jazz is a language of sound and knowing how to properly execute those sounds and
put them together to form a musical statement that not only resembles jazz, but that is actually stylistically correct,
takes some listening experience...the more the better.
Jazz has been around for about 100 years and over time, many styles of jazz have emerged and numerous great
musicians have been at the forefront of each stylistic movement. And there has always been a number of brilliant
drummers that have supplied the foundation and life's blood for each style. Familiarizing yourself with these various
styles of jazz and jazz drumming will give you the proper ear training to build your study of jazz and will clarify where
most modern styles originated. You may have to spend some cash to acquire a respectable jazz collection, but your
rewards will be endless hours of pleasure, inspiration and enlightenment. It is also an investment in your future, for
once you've acquired the necessary jazz background, not only will you play all styles of drumming better, but you'll
also be able to use that knowledge to teach others.
Paul's Picks of the Best Recorded Examples of Jazz Drumming
The following five classic recordings are some of my personal favorites and although they don't represent the earliest
forms of jazz drumming (we'll get to that later), they do represent various jazz drumming styles and they swing so
hard it's downright scary. (I'll suggest an additional five in each of my next articles.)
1. "Free For All" - Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers (Art Blakey drums)
2. "Swingin' New Big Band" - Buddy Rich (Buddy Rich - drums)
3. "Milestones" - Miles Davis ("Philly" Joe Jones - drums)
4. "Kind Of Blue" - Miles Davis (Jimmy Cobb - drums)
5. "Crescent" - John Coltrane Quartet (Elvin Jones - drums)
When playing these recordings, first just enjoy and absorb...jazz is powerful music of the human spirit. Next, pay
attention to the way these drummers play the ride cymbal (the true signature of any jazz drummer). After that, listen
to how their particular way of keeping time blends with the bass player and the rest of the rhythm section. Notice how
each drummer's style of comping with the soloists keeps the music fired up and flowing. Pay attention to the sound of
the drums and cymbals, the sound of the overall band, the dynamic changes, the interplay, the sound of the recording
itself, etc. Also, really try to learn the compositions. Many of these songs are now jazz standards that you may get
called to play one day, so learn them now. By doing so, any future jazz studies will make musical sense.
Next article: "The Jazz Ride Cymbal Pattern And How To Make It Swing - Part 1"

The Jazz Ride Cymbal Pattern And How To Make It Swing - Part 1
WERKIN' WITH WERTICO: JAZZ DRUMMING PART 2:
By Paul Wertico

There are many things that attract people to jazz. These can include jazz's spirit of adventure and freedom, as well as
the jazz musicians' expertise in both soloing and engaging in highly advanced musical interplay. Also, for many
listeners, it's the strong sense of swing that makes jazz so special. For the jazz drummer, his/her ability to swing is no
doubt the most crucial requirement, and of paramount importance is the way the drummer plays the ride cymbal. The
ride cymbal gives the tempo a distinct feel and it also gives the band a type of sonic cushion, something that the rest
of the band "rides" on. But how do you get your ride cymbal rhythm to swing?
Let's first look at the standard 4/4 time signature ride pattern itself. This is the most commonly played, yet quite often
misplayed, jazz ride cymbal rhythm. When this rhythm is played correctly, it marks and secures the tempo, while
simultaneously giving the tempo a feeling of buoyancy and forward motion. The following are two of the most
commonly written ride pattern interpretations.
In Example #1, you'll see a version of the standard 4/4 jazz ride pattern played in a triplet fashion.
Example #1. Jazz ride pattern with triplet feel:

However, depending on the tempo and on the style of jazz you're playing, this triplet subdivision can also be written
and played as a dotted eighth with a sixteenth note (See Example #2).
Example #2. Jazz ride pattern with dotted eighth sixteenth note feel:

Most drum books show the ride pattern written either one of these two ways. However, there are distinct differences in
the two written patterns. The triplet version gives a slightly more "round" sound to the overall feel. The dotted eighth
sixteenth note version gives a slightly more rigid overall feel. Playing either of these feels should be a conscious
musical choice, depending on the desired feel and the style of jazz being played. The triplet version works great with
looser type rhythm sections (ie. John Coltrane's Quartet with drummer Elvin Jones). The dotted eighth sixteenth note
version works well with swing, be-bop and big bands because it tightens up the feel and it seems to give the music an
edge. Tempo can also affect the ride pattern subdivision. Generally, the slower the tempo, the more the ride pattern
gravitates towards the dotted eighth sixteenth note version, and the faster the tempo, the more the ride pattern
gravitates to even eighth notes (See Example #3). Of course there are always exceptions, but these are the general
rules of thumb.
Example #3. Jazz ride pattern with even eighth note feel:

Now that we've talked about the ride pattern subdivisions, how do we get any of them to have a true jazz feel and
really swing? The easiest way is to think of the ride pattern not as a bunch of separate notes, but as a repeating three
note phrase that starts on beats "2" & "4". Here's where many inexperienced jazz drummers misinterpret the pattern.
Although they may play the subdivisions of the ride pattern rhythm accurately, their feel often suffers because of the
way they tend to emphasize beats "1" & "3" (See Example #4).

Example #4. "Incorrect" feel (accents on beats "1" & "3"):

When this rhythm is played with an emphasize on beats "1" & "3", the forward motion seems to stop and start every
two beats and has a jerky feel to it. This can work in certain circumstances, or when trying to play with a "two-beat"
feel, but in general, accenting the "1" & "3" is much like clapping on the "1" & "3". (Something not known as a sign of
hipness!!!) Any additional counter rhythms, such as left hand snare drum syncopations, etc., only masks the problem.
Here's a simple way to think of the ride pattern to get it swinging. First, a really crutial factor to grooving is to make
sure you feel (as well as play) a strong quarter note pulse on your ride cymbal, one that locks in with your bass player.
Next, sing to yourself: "Hey, Swing-the-band, Swing-the-band, Swing-the-band, Swing-the-band " (See Example #5).
Example #5. "Correct" feel using "Hey, Swing-the-band, Swing-the-band " (accents on beats "2" & "4"):

By thinking of: "Hey" as the downbeat (the "1" of the first bar only), then "Swing" (the "2" of the first bar), "the" (the
"ah" of "2" of the first bar), "band" (the "3" of the first bar), "Swing" (the "4" of the first bar), "the" (the "ah" of "4" of
the first bar) and "band" (the "1" of the next measure), etc., etc., you'll be on your way to phrasing the ride pattern
correctly.
The accent on the "2" & "4" can be either strong or subtle, again depending on the desired feel. Also, remember to
keep that strong "four" feeling! That's what gives your time-feel "drive" and then the "2" and "4" just seem to dance on
top of that driving pulse. By approaching the ride pattern in this manner, I think you'll see that your ride pattern will
start to swing much more. We'll look at other important factors in playing your ride cymbal in my next article. Good
luck and have fun!!!
Paul's Picks of the Best Recorded Examples of Jazz Drumming
Here are five classic recordings are some of my personal favorites and although they don't represent the earliest forms
of jazz drumming (we'll get to that later), they do represent various jazz drumming styles and they swing so hard it's
downright scary. (I'll suggest an additional five in each of my next articles.)
1. "Clifford Brown & Max Roach" (Max Roach - drums)
2. "The Sidewinder" - Lee Morgan (Billy Higgins - drums)
3. "Four And More" - Miles Davis (Tony Williams - drums)
4. "Now He Sings, Now He Sobs" - Chick Corea (Roy Haynes - drums)
5. "Thad Jones & Mel Lewis Orchestra" (Mel Lewis - drums)

When playing these recordings, first just enjoy and absorb...jazz is powerful music of the human spirit. Next, pay
attention to the way these drummers play the ride cymbal (the true signature of any jazz drummer). After that, listen
to how their particular way of keeping time blends with the bass player and the rest of the rhythm section. Notice how
each drummer's style of comping with the soloists keeps the music fired up and flowing. Pay attention to the sound of
the drums and cymbals, the sound of the overall band, the dynamic changes, the interplay, the sound of the recording
itself, etc. Also, really try to learn the compositions. Many of these songs are now jazz standards that you may get
called to play one day, so learn them now. By doing so, any future jazz studies will make musical sense.
Next article: "The Jazz Ride Cymbal Pattern And How To Make It Swing - Part 2"

The Jazz Ride Cymbal Pattern And How To Make It Swing - Part 2
WERKIN' WITH WERTICO: JAZZ DRUMMING PART 3:
By Paul Wertico

In the last article we looked at the standard 4/4 time signature ride pattern, it's various rhythmic interpretations, and
how to phrase the pattern so that it swings. However, there's a lot more to playing the ride cymbal once the music
starts. Many inexperienced jazz drummers seem to get confused about when to just play the standard ride pattern and
when to use its many permutations and variations. Let's start again with the basic ride pattern and then discuss some
of the wheres and whys of playing and breaking up this pattern to fit the music.
In Example #1, you'll see a version of the standard 4/4 jazz ride pattern played played as a dotted 8th with a 16th
note.
Example #1. Jazz ride pattern with dotted 8th-16th feel:

Once you get this pattern swinging, it gives the music a "jazz" feel as well as a nice solid foundation. However, the
repeating two beat phrase can become a little retrictive sounding after a while. There are times when playing this
pattern, without much or any variations, will work for the music, if the music calls for a more conservative feel.
However, there are also many opportunities to use variations and to let the music breathe. If used properly, these
variations enhance (rather than detract) from the original feel.
Example #2. Jazz ride pattern with dotted 8th-16th note feel and 1 bar of straight quarter notes:

Let's look at Example #2. Here you have one bar of the standard 4/4 jazz ride pattern and one bar of straight quarter
notes. Notice how the first bar seems to break up the bar into two halves and how the second bar seems to breathe
and open up the time.
Example #3. Jazz ride pattern with dotted 8th-16th note feel and one bar of reversed ride pattern:

In Example #3, the second bar is a mirror image of the first bar. Notice how the the backbeats in bar one turn into
downbeats in the second bar. Playing a two bar pattern like this can be interesting, in that it adds not only a rhythmic
variation to the standard ride pattern, but it can also serve as a type of two bar clave pattern.

Example #4. Broken up jazz ride pattern:

So far we've looked at variations with all the quarter notes still in tact. However, in Example #4, notice how there are
off beat accents without the actual quarter notes around them being played. Here it is critical that even though some
of the quarter notes are not actually played, their feeling is still present so that the time feeling remains strong and
solid. Many drummers make the mistake of losing the drive of the standard ride pattern when eliminating the quarter
notes. It's as if the off beats become too important and the feel starts to suffer. To solve this problem, the drummer
must feel the unplayed quarter notes as strongly as if they were actually being played.
Example #5. Implied mixed meters:

In Example #5, we have two bars of 4/4 time. However, in these two bars we can break up the time so that it sounds
like two bars of 3/4 and one bar of 2/4. This can be a very effective way of giving the music a different slant.
There are infinite variations to the ride cymbal pattern. You can mix and match the standard ride pattern with quarter
notes, numerous sycopated patterns, patterns consisting of any number of measures, and patterns that imply mixed
meters inside the time. Basically, you can play whatever you think the music calls for, as long as you maintain the
drive of the original ride pattern and KEEP IT SWINGING!
Good luck and have fun and see you next time!!!
Here are five classic recordings are some of my personal favorites and although they don't represent the earliest forms
of jazz drumming (we'll get to that later), they do represent various jazz drumming styles and they swing so hard it's
downright scary. (I'll suggest an additional five in each of my next articles.)
1. "Speak No Evil" - Wayne Shorter (Elvin Jones - drums)
2. "Live At The Lighthouse" - Lee Morgan (Mickey Roker - drums)
3. "The Bill Evans Trio At The Village Vanguard" - Bill Evans Trio (Paul Motian - drums)
4. "Sweet Rain" - Stan Getz (Grady Tate - drums)

5. "Red Clay" - Freddie Hubbard (Lenny White - drums)

When playing these recordings, first just enjoy and absorb...jazz is powerful music of the human spirit. Next, pay
attention to the way these drummers play the ride cymbal (the true signature of any jazz drummer). After that, listen
to how their particular way of keeping time blends with the bass player and the rest of the rhythm section. Notice how
each drummer's style of comping with the soloists keeps the music fired up and flowing. Pay attention to the sound of
the drums and cymbals, the sound of the overall band, the dynamic changes, the interplay, the sound of the recording
itself, etc. Also, really try to learn the compositions. Many of these songs are now jazz standards that you may get
called to play one day, so learn them now. By doing so, any future jazz studies will make musical sense.